


A Gift From Me

by Destiny_Writes



Series: What You Gave Me That Day [2]
Category: A3! (Video Game)
Genre: Fluff, Gentle Kissing, Kissing, M/M, Sequel, Sleeping Together, kissing on the cheek, slight angst
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-31
Updated: 2020-08-31
Packaged: 2021-03-07 01:40:14
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 11,766
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26208817
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Destiny_Writes/pseuds/Destiny_Writes
Summary: Yuki, though confused, was willing to restore his and Muku’s relationship after what it had became.But now, after their relationship had been restored and Muku’s birthday was coming up, he wasn’t exactly sure what to give him, nor what his emotions for him really meant.
Relationships: Rurikawa Yuki/Sakisaka Muku
Series: What You Gave Me That Day [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1821838
Comments: 2
Kudos: 46





	A Gift From Me

He had no idea what to think the day after.

At first, Yuki legitimately thought it was a dream. A dream that made his heart race and his breath hitch and made his body relax in Muku’s arms. ‘That’s right.’ He thought. ‘It was all just a realistic dream.’

But when he got out of his bed and climbed down the ladder, he saw it. The torn, ripped, and broken stuffed bear on his desk that Muku gave to him that night. That’s when it hit him. That’s when he realized that Muku really did say all of those things to him last night, and that Muku really did kiss him on the cheek in that moment.

Wide-eyed, Yuki felt his cheek, the spot where Muku had pressed his lips upon. It was burning hot, and Yuki had supposed that the rest of his face was, too. Though, he felt a sudden warmness rush through him, a sense of tranquility. The feeling was nice, he supposed. But…

‘I still haven’t made up my mind about it…’ Yuki thought, deflating a bit. Muku had confessed to him, and yet Yuki had responded with a “I’ll need some time to think about it.” It certainly wasn’t the best response, but at least he didn’t reject him altogether. But then again, it had only been one night since the confession, and Yuki was already thinking about giving him an answer. The time he could’ve spent thinking about his decision, he instead spent sleeping, thinking that the whole thing was a figment of his dreams instead of reality.

Frowning, Yuki picked the stuffed bear up gently. It looked terrible, and yet Yuki felt that he would treasure it with his life. Despite how old and torn it looked, Yuki wasn’t going to repair it, or to throw it out either. He, instead, was going to leave it as it was, to be a reminder of how Muku thought about him every day.

‘What he thinks about me…’ Yuki reminisced.

Yes, Muku loves him. He loves him, and yet Yuki had no idea about it until yesterday night. Was he just being oblivious? Or was it because…

“I was too focused on being a good friend to him to really notice?” He mumbled to himself, setting down the bear gently. He pulled out his chair and sat down at his desk to think about it.

So, what did he really think about him?

Yuki didn’t hate him for confessing, there’s no way he could. He was surprised, of course, but it didn’t really affect his feelings towards him… whatever they were.

At first, he didn’t really think of Muku as much. He was just someone who he went to school with, someone who was a member of the Summer Troupe. Though, his perspective about him finally changed on that day when they handed out flyers together. He had convinced himself that Muku wasn’t the most dependable person, but when Muku let him cry on his shoulder and wrap his arms around his waist, it felt… comforting, to say the least.

From that day on, they arranged weekly study sessions for their homework or upcoming tests. Yuki didn’t think of it when he first met him, but he found that he and Muku had become close friends. He, himself, didn't have someone like him before, which was probably why he spent all his time with Muku, instead. Of course, he’d make some room for other people if he had the time, but… was it too selfish to prefer hanging out with Muku than anybody else?

‘It probably is…’ He thought to himself, sulking a bit. All those times that he hung out with Muku, laughing and having fun with him, letting himself go for an hour or two… is that what caused the sudden confession?

Maybe it wasn’t actually sudden, and he had been oblivious to it this entire time. He hung out with Muku almost every day, he supposed it was destined to happen at some point. ‘He just chose to do it yesterday night. On my birthday.’ Now if that wasn’t something special, he didn’t know what was. Maybe he just needed some more time to think-

“Hey, Rurikawa. What the hell’s happened to you?”

He heard an annoyed voice coming from his dorm room’s entrance, the one and only Tenma Sumeragi.

Yuki turned around to face him. “What do you mean, Hack? Are you saying that it’s illegal to be sitting at my desk?” He teased, smirking a bit.

Tenma groaned, furrowing his brow in dismay. “No, but it’s already eleven. Are you gonna eat breakfast or what?” He retorted.

Eleven?

He switched on his phone, and sure enough, the number eleven greeted him. He then felt a wave of hunger wash over him. ‘Since when did I lose track of time?’ He thought to himself.

“Yeah, yeah, I’m coming, Hack. Just gimme a moment to get changed.” Yuki said, rolling his eyes at him.

Tenma scoffed and closed the door, leaving Yuki alone in the room, by himself.

‘Maybe I’ll need much more time than I thought…’ 

—— — ——— — ——

The days afterward were quite… awkward, to say the least. Yuki was basically beside Muku for the entire time on weekdays, especially in school, so their daily chats together were much more silent than usual. Not only that, but their study times together seemed to last longer, and Yuki could hardly focus despite how quiet the room usually was. His head was filled with confusion and worry, and near the end of the week he felt that he didn’t get anything done. Each day that had gone by left him mentally exhausted, and so, he felt that there was only one thing to do.

Stress sewing.

“Stress sewing”, as Yuki called it, was sewing that he did when he was… well, stressed. And yes, he was very stressed at the moment, both because of Muku and his own emotions. If he couldn’t focus while sewing, then there was no way he’d be able to do anything else.

Stitch after stitch, Yuki sewed through the night, still going even after Tenma went to sleep in his room. He honestly didn’t know what he was sewing. He just grabbed some fabric and stitched them together as his hands moved automatically, knowing what to do without even thinking. But as the night drew on, he began to tire out, and his eyes began to droop significantly.

‘What time is it..?’ Yuki thought tiredly, picking up his phone from his desk. He winced as the bright light hit his eyes and caught sight of a two. ‘Two in the morning? Jesus…’ He thought, groaning. He picked up the assortment of fabrics he sewed together and widened his eyes. Turning on his phone’s flashlight function, he aimed it at the fabric and softened his gaze.

The colors were all soft and bright, mainly colors of pink, blue, and a bit of cream mixed in. It reminded Yuki of Muku, in almost every way possible. He felt his face get warm, and he sighed as he put the fabric down. At the end of the day, his last thought would always be Muku, huh? It’s like he could never get rid of him, no matter how hard he tried.

‘But… it’s not like it’s a bad thing, right?’ Yuki thought to himself, leaning back in his chair. ‘Sure, this whole sewing session was because of him, but…’ He glanced back at the fabric and found himself smiling softly. ‘It makes me feel happy… in a way.’ He could hear his heartbeat loud in his ears, and he couldn't help but put his hand to his chest, just to feel how hard it was actually beating. Was this because of love… or happiness? He still couldn’t tell. Either way, it was time for him to get some proper rest.

He folded up the fabric on his desk, climbed up the ladder, and went to his bed, dropping onto it with a soft thud. The warmth of the sheets was quite welcoming compared to the coldness of the room. Sighing, he buried himself in the sheets and fell asleep almost instantly, thoughts of Muku running through his head.

—— — ——— — ——

Yuki woke up much later than usual, as Tenma wasn’t in his bed sleeping anymore. It felt almost like it did a week ago, but without all the confusion and idiocy. For some reason, he felt really well-rested, even though he was awake for god knows how long last night.

Yuki got out of his bed and stretched, welcoming the sunlight that entered the room. He was in a good mood too, surprisingly. Usually after his “stress sewing” sessions he’d be dead like how Tsuzuru was after writing a script, so this was pretty nice, if he were to be honest.

Giving the morning a small smile, he climbed down his ladder and dressed up for the day, heading toward the door. He froze for a second, however, as he noticed that the fabric he had folded up on his desk wasn’t exactly folded the same way that it was last night. Yuki sighed. ‘The Hack touched it, didn’t he?’ He thought. Well, it wasn’t exactly a big deal. Only Yuki knew the message behind those familiar choices of colors.

He left his room and immediately went over to the lounge, not willing to miss out on breakfast like he did the first time. As Yuki peeked through the door, he saw the lounge, full of chatter and laughter. He exhaled before walking in, moving over to sit at the table.

The first one who noticed him was Tenma, who was also sitting at the table, finished his breakfast. He smirked at him, while Yuki scrunched his face up at his reaction. “So, you’re finally awake. I didn’t expect you to do the same thing you did last week, but I guess you did.” Tenma mentioned, as Yuki sat down across from him. “What was that you said to me a few days ago? ‘Early to bed, early to rise’?” He teased.

Yuki rolled his eyes back at him. “Whatever, Hack. It’s not like I expect you to understand what I’m going through, anyways.” He retorted, taking a serving of breakfast. He pretended not to notice the slightly concerned expression on Tenma’s face, which was quickly wiped away in less than an instant.

“Heya, fam!”

Ah, great. It was him.

“Oh, Yukki, you’re awake!” Kazunari exclaimed, as he walked over to sit beside him. “That’s great! I wanted to talk to you about something-“

“Nope, not right now.” Yuki cut him off instantly, taking a bite out of his breakfast. He noticed the way Kazunari’s expression turned from pure excitement to a frown.

“Aww, shot down again…” Kazunari spoke remorsely, sulking a bit. The smile, however, quickly returned to his face after a few seconds. “But, y’know Yukki, you should take a break every once in a while!” He mentioned.

Yuki raised an eyebrow. “But I already take breaks? And the costumes for the next play haven’t been decided yet, so it’s not like I have much to work on.” He took another bite of his breakfast, while Kazunari’s arm wrapped around his shoulders.

“But you’ve been so distant!” Kazunari whined. “Is school getting harder for you?” He asked him, seemingly begging for an answer.

Yuki frowned and pushed his arm away. “No, school isn’t getting harder. And what are you talking about, I hang out with you guys all the time!” He responded, brow furrowed. It was actually true, though most of the ‘hanging out’ was when one of his troupe members caused chaos in the dorms. 

But when Tenma and Kazunari shared a concered expression, Yuki knew something was up. “What? What’s the problem?” He asked them, picking at his food with his fork.

“Look.” Tenma started, brows furrowed. “You’ve been… disconnected from the others for a while, me included. It’s like you’re lost in your thoughts half the time, and whenever we try to talk to you, you make excuses and shut us down.” He explained.

Yuki froze. Wait, he was doing that?

Was he thinking so hard about what had happened a week ago that he’s basically shutting people down about it? He thought everything was… normal. That nobody would notice his thinking throughout the week. Well, turns out that he was wrong. The Summer Troupe did have the closest relationship with each other anyways, so he guessed it was bound to happen at some point.

Yuki huffed out a breath. “Ok, you’re right. Maybe I am going through something that’s not related to acting or school or sewing. But it’s not your problem, and I know that I can handle it on my own. So… don’t worry about me.” He assured them, finishing up his breakfast.

The other two were quiet, taking in the information. “It won’t be a repeat of what happened at Sardine Search, right?” Kazunari spoke up, obviously worried.

Yuki shook his head as an answer. “If I needed help, I would talk to you guys about it, you have my word.” He told them, getting up off the table and picking up his plate.

“Oh, and Yukki!” Kazunari called out, before he could go over to put his plate in the sink. Yuki turned around to face him, raising an eyebrow. “Mukuun wanted me to tell you that he was worried, and that he was afraid that he hurt you somehow.” He continued, lowering his voice.

Yuki bit his lip slightly, looking over to the couch in the lounge where Muku was sitting. He couldn’t deny that he looked off, even though the pink-haired boy was reading one of his shojo manga books, his knees up to his chest. Muku raised his head to look up, and their eyes met for a couple seconds. And, as he expected, Muku flushed and looked back down, practically burying his face in the book at this point. ‘...Cute.’ A voice in his mind spoke up, and he couldn’t help but blush as well.

Kazunari looked confused. “Uhh… earth to Yukki! Hello?” He said, waving a hand in front of his face. 

Yuki caught it, and gave him a stern expression. “Don’t do that.” He said, brows furrowed. Kazunari slowly took his arm back, slightly nervous from the other’s expression. “And tell Muku this: ‘I’m not mad. I just need some more time, then I’ll get back to you when I’m ready to give my answer.’ Alright?” Yuki asked him, expression slightly concerned.

Something in Kazunari’s mind clicked, and he instantly grew excited. “Ohhh, so this is between you and Mukkun!” He exclaimed loudly.

Yuki smacked his arm, which Kazunari responded to with a whine. “Don’t tell anyone else about this, ok? I know you’re not the type to keep secrets, but me and Wonder Boy trust you with this information, so don’t leak it.” He insisted, glare getting sharper.

Kazunari shrunk a bit, giving him a forced smile and a thumbs up. “Y-yup..!” He responded.

“And if I ever hear a word about this from anyone else…” Yuki continued, stare getting more and more deadly. “I will keep you in my room sewing nonstop until your hands are sore, without any breaks for sleep.” He threatened, making Kazunari tremble. The blonde gulped and nodded his head, not able to form a verbal answer. Yuki sighed. “Good.” He let him go, and Kazunari made his way back to his seat, still terrified.

Yuki frowned, putting his plate in the sink. Sighing, he silently swore to himself that he would give Muku an answer within the next week or so. There was no way he would spend an entire month thinking over some stupid feelings, after all.

—— — ——— — ——

Well, he was a hypocrite.

It’s been a month. An entire month, and he still couldn’t figure out his feelings. It wasn’t as bad as the first week, though, as he wasn’t as mentally exhausted as before. But when he thought he would finally reach a conclusion, something would bring him to be unsure about his answer, and at the end of the day he would still be thinking about his decision.

His relationship with Muku wasn’t turning out well, either. The news from Kazunari must’ve reached him within the first week, because whenever the pink-haired boy caught sight of him, an expression of expectancy would show on his face. But the longer Yuki took to make his decision, the more worried Muku became. Now, they became distant towards each other, and they hardly talked. They put off their study sessions, and instead decided to study on their own time. And whenever they would hold something with the entire Summer Troupe, they would become awkward and not interact with each other at all.

Yuki tried to convince himself that nothing had changed. His grades weren’t dropping, his inspiration was still flowing, and his feelings were still pretty normal. But when it came to Muku, or anything related to him, he knew that something would change. He didn’t know what kind of change, but he knew that it would change in some way, somehow. 

That’s mainly why he was avoiding him, because he was worried. He was worried that Muku would hate him after what he’d done. He gave him a false sense of hope, and told him repeatedly that he would give him an answer, only to take back his word at the very end. If he finally did answer and say “yes” to Muku, what would happen? They didn’t hang out with each other anymore anyways, so what was the point of saying “yes” to him? And if he said that he “still wanted to be friends”, what kind of friendship did they even share anymore? To Yuki, Muku was now less than a friend… an acquaintance, whether he liked it or not.

Yuki sighed, getting up off his desk. He was working on the Winter Troupe’s costumes for Nocturnality, their newest play, and he was making good progress. Most of the costumes he was sewing for it were very simple, so there was nothing to worry about that.

He crouched down and opened up his desk’s drawer, taking a peek inside to see what thread he had. He was running out of a few colors, to which he could do some shopping for later in the week. He pushed some of the thread aside until he noticed a light pink fabric underneath everything else. Carefully, so that nothing would fall out of the drawer, he pulled the fabric out, now noticing what it actually was.

The assortment of stitched fabric was, indeed, the stress-sewing project he had worked on earlier in the month. Thoughts of Muku then came rushing back, and he felt his brain wrack with how hard the emotions were hitting him. He slowly looked over to the bear that sat on his desk. Did these items mean nothing to him now? What was left of the emotions that were put into each project?

Yuki frowned, putting the assortment of fabric on his desk and sitting down. As he stared at the project, he then began to think, harder than he had during the last couple of weeks. Brow furrowed, he put his chin in his hands.

‘Alright, Yuki, time to take this seriously.’ He thought, huffing out a breath. ‘What do I really think about Muku?’ He asked himself, not shying away from the question this time. He knew Muku on a very personal level. He recognized the way he smiled and laughed, and he grew fond of how unintentionally cute he can be. Actually... the more he thought about him, the more weird he felt. Was it normal for friends to know each other like this?

He shook his head, sighing. ‘Ok, Yuki. Let’s take this from something that would happen… in a shojo manga, why not?’ He thought to himself, rolling his eyes. For some reason, he was absolutely serious. He did, however, try everything else, so what was wrong with doing it this way? 

Yuki thought a bit about what shojo manga lovers would do based on his knowledge about the books, and then asked himself those questions. ‘Would you want to hold hands with him?’ He thought to himself first. ‘Well, don’t friends do that? It’s not like it’s not normal to hold hands with somebody if you’re close.’ He dismissed the question, thinking that it was unimportant. 

He thought a little deeper into some relationships, something that all experienced lovers had in common. ‘Would you like to kiss him?’ Was his second question. His face flushed, and he immediately put away the question in the blink of an eye. He wasn’t ready to answer that question just yet. Maybe until he was a little more sure about his feelings, first.

He then thought of something more shallow than the other two. ‘Would you… like to spend time with him?’ Was his third. ‘Well, yeah, of course. He’s the best person to spend time with in the Summer Troupe. Actually, scratch that, the best person to spend time with in the company. Even if we weren’t close at all, for sure I’d choose to hang out with him every once in a while-‘

There. That was it. The lightbulb quickly lit up in Yuki’s head and he immediately straightened up in in his seat. Of course. How could he be so dumb? He groaned, slumping down on his desk. He knew the reason why he was so unsure. It was because he wasn’t spending time with Muku that he doesn’t know anything about his own feelings.

Yuki frowned, feeling worried. He was thinking too hard about everything else that he forgot what he and Muku had as a relationship. They cared for each other in the darkest of times, and they would do anything for the other to be happy. Yuki couldn’t deny it, he missed the way Muku’s arms wrapped around him when he was sad. He missed the way his eyes would crinkle whenever he saw something he liked. He missed his cute laughter and bubbly personality and...

Yuki sighed. The more he thought about it, the worse the feeling in his gut became.

...He really did miss him, huh?

Yuki tightened his grip on the fabric, a stern expression on his face. It was entirely his choice to whether or not his and Muku’s relationship stayed, and so, with firm determination, he decided to take matters into his own hands.

‘Don’t worry, Muku.’ Yuki thought, smiling as he looked up at the bear. ‘I’ll figure out an answer soon.’

—— — ——— — ——

“Oh. Uh… hey, Yuki-kun…” Muku muttered meekly, stepping into Yuki and Tenma’s shared room.

Yuki immediately noticed him once he walked in. “Hey, Wonder Boy.” He patted the spot next to him, gesturing for him to take a seat. Muku did what he was told, sitting down next to him. After handing him some fabric and thread, he leaned in to tell him what to do. “So, just stitch along this part here, and once you’re done I’ll let you use the sewing machine for the rest, alright?” He told him firmly.

Muku responded with a nod. “O-ok, Yuki-kun.” He muttered, quickly getting to work.

Yuki sat at his desk and turned on his sewing machine, gently pushing the fabric through it. Pondering for a moment, he quickly spoke up from his desk, breaking the silence. “So, what have you been doing lately?” He asked him.

Muku seemed confused by the question. “Why are you asking? I-I mean, I know you don’t like it when there’s noise in the room while you’re sewing…” He trailed off, shrinking in on himself.

Yuki sighed. “I know. But this time I’m making an exception.” He said firmly, talking and concentrating on sewing at the same time. “So, what happened?” He asked.

Muku hesitated. “Well, nothing much. I-I mean, nothing’s really stood out to me during the past month, so…” He muttered awkwardly, while trying to focus on sewing as well. “H-how about you?” Muku asked him.

Yuki responded instantly. “Well, my grades are doing well, and nobody’s been teasing me over the past couple weeks, which I’m pretty glad about.” He could practically feel Muku deflating with each word he spoke, which made him frown. Sighing, he decided to continue. “Sewing the costumes for the new play have been going well, too. I’m almost done with them, actually. That’s why I asked you to help out, so that they could get finished faster.” He said, turning off the sewing machine and looking back at him.

“Eh?” Muku responded, raising an eyebrow. “W-why me? I mean, you have Taichi, and this is the Winter Troupe’s play, so he should be free to sew, isn’t he? He has more experience, too.” He explained, frowning.

Yuki’s expression softened, and he got up off his desk to sit beside him on the couch. “Look, it’s just…” He started, taking in a breath before continuing. “We haven’t been spending time with each other often, so I decided to change that.” Muku was about to speak, but before he could, Yuki cut him off. “And don’t go and start insulting yourself again. I’m not mad at you, and I never was, ok?” He said, putting a hand on his arm.

Yuki saw the faintest dust of pink on Muku’s face, and he couldn’t help but feel satisfied that he made him blush. Smiling a little, he picked up another sheet of fabric lying on the table and started sewing again. He noticed Muku staring, and he quickly lifted his head to look up at him. “What is it?” He asked him, raising an eyebrow.

Muku’s blush suddenly got redder. “N-nothing!” He squealed out, looking away from Yuki and instead toward the fabric he was holding. Yuki snickered, grabbing his needle and making a few more stitches on the fabric. After a while, Muku suddenly let out a noise. “Ah!” He exclaimed, flinching.

Yuki raised an eyebrow and looked at him. “What? Did you prick your finger or something?” He said nonchalantly, noticing the pained expression on Muku’s face.

Muku froze. “M… maybe.” He responded dejectedly, frowning. Yuki looked over at his finger, and sure enough, a dot of bright red blood could be seen near the tip. Before Yuki could speak, a worried Muku cut him off. “I’m so sorry, Yuki-kun… There’s no way that this old, rotten, cheese curd of a person would be able to do the right stitching without making a mist-“

“Shush.” Yuki said, looking him straight in the eye. “You’re none of those things, Muku, okay?” He reassured him, expression softening the slightest bit. He saw Muku relax, and he picked up his finger and set the fabric aside, examining it. “Wait here.” He told him, moving over to his desk to grab a bandage.

Yuki rummaged through his desk quickly, moving around spools of thread and other sewing items, before finally spotting the box of bandages near the back of one of his drawers. He took the box and pulled out a bandage, going back to Muku and sitting down next to him.

“Here.” Yuki said, peeling off the excess paper on the bandage before wrapping it around Muku’s finger.

Muku smiled. “The pattern looks so cute, Yuki-kun!” He said, admiring the bandage. “Where did you get these?” He asked, eyes sparkling.

The corners of Yuki’s mouth threatened to turn up. “Just from one of my favorite stores. We can go visit sometime, if you’d like.” He suggested.

Muku beamed. “That would be really great, Yuki-kun.” He responded, holding his bandaged finger gently.

Yuki hesitated. Looking at Muku’s finger, he felt something at the back of his mind pushing him to do something unexpected. He guessed that he wasn’t thinking straight at the time, because when he heard the thought, he immediately brought it to action.

Grabbing Muku’s finger gently, Yuki scootched in and leaned closer, pressing a chaste kiss to the tip of it. He could hear Muku’s breath hitch, and his heart was pounding in his ears. His face felt incredibly warm, and he supposed that Muku’s was, too. Nonetheless, he slowly moved his head upward to see Muku’s expression. 

His face was hued with the brightest red, and his baby blue eyes were wide. To Yuki, he looked almost fascinated instead of surprised, but after a few moments, he broke eye contact and immediately pulled away from him.

Yuki let out a cough and looked away, his face still warm. “W-well, we should get back to making the costumes. They won’t be sewing themselves, after all.” He said, breaking the awkwardness between them. He returned to his desk and let out a sigh, taking in a deep breath. ‘Why the hell did I do that?’ He thought to himself, groaning groaning. He was about to turn his sewing machine on again, but not until he heard Muku speak up to break the silence between them.

“T-that was…” Muku began, still paralyzed from the interaction between them. “You were really cool just now, Y-Yuki-kun.” He stated silently.

‘Shit.’

Yuki’s face immediately turned red once again, and he couldn’t help from stuttering when he made his response. “W-what are you talking about?” He responded, turning his head around to fave himdarting .

A warm smile greeted him from the couch. “Well, when you did... that, just now, you looked really confident. And, well, I kinda liked… it…” He muttered out, shrinking with each word he spoke. “Y-you know what? Maybe I should just stay quiet from now on…” He said nervously, turning back to face the fabric he was holding.

‘He...liked it?’ Yuki thought, feeling both prideful and embarrassed by the sudden praise from Muku. “No, it’s fine. I don’t mind it when you… praise me like that.” He reassured him, grabbing his fabric and turning on his sewing machine, gently pushing the sheet through just as he did so before. His face was still red, and his heart was still pounding in his ears, but it had to do.

Yuki could hear Muku’s response from the couch. “Oh, that’s good. I was kinda afraid that you would get offended or something…” He muttered nervously.

‘At you? Never.’ The voice at the back of Yuki’s mind spoke. He frowned, and instead said, “Well, I wasn’t. Stop acting like it’s a big deal.” He heard Muku make a muttered sentence of approval before getting back to work.

Yuki sighed a little. The problem was, he actually wanted Muku to act like it was a big deal, and he wasn’t exactly sure why. Maybe he liked the feelings that came with the praise, or maybe he just liked hearing those words. 

...Or maybe he liked the praise only because it was coming from Muku. 

Yuki furrowed his brow, stifling a sigh. Despite how hard he tried to think of other reasons, that voice at the back of his mind would still tell him things that he both wanted and never wanted to hear. Why was it like this? Why was he always thinking this way about Muku? Whatever the answer was, he decided to save those questions for later.

Once he was done using the sewing machine, he turned towards Muku. “Here. You’ll need to use this next.” He said, gesturing for him to come over. Muku smiled back at him before walking over and sitting down at his desk.

Yuki was afraid that their relationship would change. But… what if this ‘change’ was what he really wanted? With Muku laughing beside him, having fun… it was just like how they used to hang out. He would be lying if he said that he didn’t enjoy spending time with him like this.

‘Do… do I love him?’ Yuki asked himself, specifically the voice at the back of his mind.

…It gave no answer.

Yuki supposed that getting the answer by chance wasn’t going to work. Maybe he could continue doing this from time to time. Keep on hanging out with Muku, so that he’d have a clearer idea of what his answer would be.

‘...Yeah.’ Yuki concluded. ‘That can work.’

“Y… Yuki-kun?” Muku spoke up, tugging on his sleeve gently.

Yuki was pulled back to reality instantly. “W-what?” He responded, surprised.

“Sorry... It’s just that you were standing there… smiling.” Muku answered back, fiddling with his hands.

‘Oh.’ Yuki realized, the faintest dust of pink appearing on his cheeks. “I was just… thinking, alright?” He huffed out, embarrassed.

Muku giggled back at him. “Ok, Yuki-kun.” He responded.

Grabbing Muku’s hands gently, Yuki lead them to where they were supposed to be, and told him what to do, step-by-step. Once he was done, Yuki stepped back to watch him.

Muku, ever concentrated, was trying his best to do what Yuki had told him. It was endearing, actually, watching him from the side like this. Was it creepy to like doing this? To like… watching Muku?

Yuki huffed out a breath. When will he ever get those answers?

—— — ——— — ——

A few days after that sewing session, Yuki decided to spend some time with Muku in a more... personal way. A way that only him and Muku knew about.

After Tenma had begun to sleep talk, Yuki slid out of his bed and grabbed a pillow, silently making his way down the ladder and out of his room. In his cutely patterned nightgown, Yuki closed the door behind him and made his way next door, where Muku and Kazunari would be sleeping.

Yuki vaguely remembered the pattern of knocks he and Muku used to contact each other - they haven’t done this in a while - and nervously put knuckles against wood. After the sequence, he waited for a noise, or some kind of sign that Muku had heard him.

… No answer.

Yuki sighed. Muku was a bit of a light sleeper, only when he wasn’t dreaming. You could only wake up a dreaming Muku by shaking him awake, Yuki should know.

So, he silently entered the room, Kazunari‘s soft snoring greeting him. Closing the door behind him, Yuki went over to Muku’s side of the room and climbed up the ladder, wincing every time a creak sounded out. Once he was up, he exhaled a breath and looked over at Muku, who was still sleeping soundly in his bed. He walked closer to him, now realizing how blessed he was to have the chance to see Muku like this.

The shojo-manga lover was sound asleep, lips slightly parted and chest rising and lowering softly. He was hugging a large pillow close to his body, and if you waited long enough, you would hear the soft sound of his voice mumbling quietly in his sleep.

Yuki could hear his heart beating loud in his ears. He liked cute things, and this was no exception... but this was Muku, someone he knew dearly. He never thought that seeing Muku so vulnerable like this would make him feel this way, but it did. Taking in a deep breath, he set his pillow to the side and placed his hands on Muku, gently shaking him awake.

Muku’s brows furrowed at first, then he made an adorable sound that resembled a whine before burying his face in the pillow, not wanting to wake up.

Yuki’s face grew warm. Why did Muku have to be so cute?

Sighing, Yuki shook him again, harder than last time. He heard Muku mumble something incoherent before he removed his face from his pillow, opening his eyes to a pouting Yuki. Squinting so that he could get a better look, Muku sat up and leaned back on his bedrest, still staring. After a few moments, he spoke.

“...Yuki?” His soft voice uttered, tilting his head to the side.

Yuki nodded his head. “Yup, it’s me.” He said, sitting on the bed. “I… need to talk to you about something.” He muttered, frowning. 

Muku was now wide awake and worried. “W-what happened?” He asked, gently putting his hand on Yuki’s. “Someone hurt you again, didn’t they?” He said, furrowing his brow.

Yuki sighed, looking at the floor. “...Yeah. The boys at school thought it was funny to leave me alone for a couple weeks. Y’know, give me a false sense of hope.” Muku nodded, patting the spot near to him for Yuki to sit down. He did so, crawling over the sheets to sit beside him. “And, well, they ganged up on me yesterday. It was the same old, with the insults and stuff.” He said nonchalantly.

“Mm.” Muku responded, reaching over and wrapping him in his arms. Letting out a breath, Yuki turned his head into the crook of Muku’s neck and closed his eyes, taking in the warmth of the other.

“One tried to hit me, though.” Yuki brought up, bringing forth a gasp from the other.

“R-really!?” Muku exclaimed, a little louder than necessary. Kazunari’s snoring stopped for a moment, which made them both tense up. After a few moments, when his snoring began again, they both exhaled a breath. “S-sorry.” He apologized, frowning. “I mean, really? Are you ok?” Muku asked, bringing him away a little to get a clearer view of his face. His thumb stroked his cheek, and Yuki couldn’t help but blush. He was lucky that the room was dark, otherwise he’d probably embarrass himself even further.

“My reflexes aren’t that quick, so I got a bruise to the arm. But I promise that I’m fine. It’s not like I’m injured or anything.” Yuki muttered, as Muku’s frown grew deeper.

Sighing, Muku held him to his chest tightly. “Yuki…” He whispered out, breath hot over his ear. “What if it was to the face? You could’ve broken something if that happened...” Muku said, worried. “I should…” He started, seeming unsure about what he was going to say next. He sighed, running his fingers through Yuki’s hair soothingly. “I should start walking with you to and from school again. I don’t want anything to happen to you, Yuki-kun.” He said fondly, closing his eyes.

Yuki, smiling, gave a hum of approval in response.

They stayed like that for a while. Yuki didn’t know how long it had been since he walked into Muku’s room, but one thing was for sure, he didn’t want to let go. He’s been through this many times before, and yet he just couldn’t get enough. The feeling of Muku’s fingers running through his hair… the sound of Muku’s heartbeat in his ears… to Yuki, everything about Muku in this moment was… perfect. He wanted it to stay.

Yuki felt something warm drop down his cheek. Sniffling, he started crying into Muku’s shoulder. He didn’t know whether it was from sadness, pain, or relief… all he knew was that he wanted to be like this. Safe in Muku’s arms, away from all the insults and bullying… away from the world.

After what felt like forever, Yuki stopped crying, and found that the both of them were lying down on the bed. He figured that Muku had brought them into a more comfortable position, since putting their bodies on the bedrest for a while wasn’t exactly pleasant.

Feeling warm inside, Yuki put a hand on Muku’s chest. “You can let go of me now, Muku.” He whispered, pushing him away a little. When Muku’s arms stayed wrapped around him, he raised an eyebrow. That’s when he realised that Muku’s fingers weren’t in his hair anymore. His heartbeat wasn’t as fast as it was before, and his breathing had slowed down significantly. Looking up, Yuki caught sight of the same expression he had seen when he walked into the room, complete with a smile.

Yuki flushed in embarrassment, resting his forehead on the sleeping Muku’s shoulder. ‘So I’m his pillow now, huh?’ He thought, sighing. It wasn’t exactly a bad thing, he had actually pictured this scenario with Muku before. He just didn’t expect for it to happen so soon… after what they’d been through.

Frowning, Yuki tried prying off Muku’s arms, but to no avail. His strength was no match for the used to be ace of the track-and-field team. Pushing him away wasn’t working either, and when he tried grabbing another pillow for him to hold onto, his arms made no move to hold it. Furrowing his brow, Yuki realized that the only way to get out of this situation was to wake Muku up. He put his hands on his chest gently and got ready to shake, but not before hearing the smallest whisper from his sleeping friend.

“...I love you, Yuki-kun.”

Yuki froze, his face getting ten times hotter than it was before. His arms no longer had the energy to shake him awake, and his heartbeat was loud in his ears. “I-I…” Yuki stuttered, not sure where he was getting by doing so.

“You’re… the bravest person I know.”

Lost for words, Yuki just rested his head on Muku, praying that he would stop. But at the same time… he didn’t really want him to. He wanted to hear him whisper these words every day. Why did Muku have to be like this? Why did Muku love him, out of all people?

“Why..? Because I look up to you.”

Yuki froze as he heard the unexpected answer to his question. His expression softening, Yuki closed his eyes and slowly wrapped his arms around the other’s neck.

“I want you to be happy… Yuki-kun.”

Yuki let out a breath, hearing each and every whisper that Muku muttered out. The longer he stayed to hear them, the more they sounded like a lullaby, lulling himself to sleep. He opened his eyes a crack to see the sleeping face of Muku once more before closing them again.

...A few minutes resting wouldn’t hurt, right?

—— — ——— — ——

“K-Kazunari, please! Delete that photo before Yuki wakes up!”

“Ehh, why? It’ll be a great new asset to the Summer Troupe's blog!”

...What?

Yuki groaned as he rolled over on the bed, squinting his eyes as the bright sunlight entered the room. The moment he let out a noise, Kazunari and Muku froze, realizing that they had woken the sleeping beauty up.

“The hell’s going on?” Yuki said tiredly, slowly sitting up on the bedrest. He caught sight of Muku, who was visibly worried, and Kazunari, who was currently forcing a smile.

Instantly, Kazunari responded. “It’s nothing, Yukki! Don’t worry about it!” Despite the smile, Yuki knew he was hiding something.

Yuki sighed, rubbing his eyes. “You guys said something about a photo?” He said nonchalantly, pushing the sheets away from him.

The other two in the room seemed to grow worried once Yuki had caught on. Slightly worried, Muku tried to hide what was happening. “U-umm… I-it’s just a surprise, Yuki-kun! You’re not supposed to see it until later!” Yuki raised an eyebrow and sighed. Despite the progress Muku had made in his acting, he was still a terrible liar.

After he climbed down the ladder, Yuki went up to Kazunari and held out a hand, glaring at him. The blonde tensed before succumbing to what would soon be Yuki’s wrath. Unlocking his phone, Kazunari held a breath as he showed Yuki the photo.

Yuki’s eyes widened at first, as he saw what had to be the position he and Muku were holding each other in last night. He couldn’t deny that Muku looked incredibly cute from that angle, but taking photos while they were sleeping? What kind of creep does that?

Now angered, Yuki snatched his phone and immediately deleted the photo before putting it back in Kazunari’s grasp. “Don’t do that again. You’ll know what happens if you do.” He glared sharply at him before turning away to walk out of the room, leaving a terrified Muku and Kazunari behind.

Muku sighed, but Kazunari smiled brightly at him. “Don’t be so sad, Mukuun! I took more than just one, anyways! We’re just lucky that Yukki didn’t see the rest.” He pulled out his phone once more and sent the photo to Muku.

“Oh!” Muku said, surprised. “You did?” He asked. His phone then let out a ping, and Muku went to check it, quickly noticing the photo that Kazunari had taken of them. “Why are you… sending it to me?” He asked, raising an eyebrow.

Kazunari smiled, taking a seat at his desk. “Well, whenever Yuki posts photos of himself on our blog, you always ask for them! It’s like you secretly have a crush on-“

“N-NOPE!” Muku screamed out, making Kazunari flinch. The pink haired boy froze before continuing. “I-I mean, no. I don’t have a crush on him at all!” He insisted, flushing a bit.

Kazunari stifled a laugh. To him, Yuki and Muku’s relationship was incredibly obvious. I mean, who would sleep in your friend’s bed if you didn’t? “Whatever you say, Mukkun!” He playfully agreed, now noticing something on Muku’s side of the room. “Hey, isn’t that Yukki’s pillow?” He mentioned, pointing to Muku’s bed.

Muku widened his eyes. “Oh yeah, it is!” He went up his ladder and took it, going back down and opening their shared room’s door. “I’ll just give this back to Yuki. I’ll be right back!” He said to Kazunari before heading out of the room.

Yuki, meanwhile, was opening his shared room’s door. As he walked in, he noticed that Tenma was also awake, snipping away at his bonsai tree before he went out for breakfast. The experienced actor’s eyes widened when he noticed him. “Where were you?” He asked, putting away his scissors.

Yuki froze, trying to think of a lie. “I just woke up early cause I had to check on something. Don’t worry about it too much.” He said, walking over to his and Tenma’s shared closet and picking out clothes for him to wear. 

Tenma hesitated. “...In your nightgown?” He said incredulously, raising an eyebrow.

Yuki tensed up. “Yeah.” He lied. “It’s not like anyone saw me anyways.” He said nonchalantly, removing his nightgown and putting on a dress somebody gave him for his birthday. He moved over to a box he had kept in their closet and pulled out a cute necklace, deciding whether or not he wanted to wear it for today. At the same time, Muku walked into their room, holding Yuki’s pillow under his arm.

“Yuki-kun, you forgot your pillow in my room!” Muku spoke up, making Tenma hesitate, then smirk. 

“So, you slept over?” Tenma teased, now knowing what had happened between the two youngest members of the company.

Yuki flushed as he turned around to spot Muku near the entrance to their room. “...Hey, Wonder Boy.” He greeted silently, embarrassed. He walked over to him and took the pillow, sighing as he climbed up the ladder to put it back, fixing the sheets of his bed as well.

Tenma snickered as Yuki’s anger grew bigger. “It was just an accident, ok!?” The green haired boy yelled. “Just… don’t tell anyone else about it.” He ordered, his face still red.

Muku suddenly closed in on himself. “O-oh no… I came in at the worst possible time didn’t I? I’m so sorry Yuki-kun! P-punish me however you see fit!” He shouted out, shutting his eyes tightly and bowing down to him.

Yuki, still red, grew surprised at the other’s reaction. “W-what? I’m not gonna punish you!” He shouted back at him, crossing his arms. “I’d never…” He muttered out, stopping himself before he could embarrass himself further.

“Oh… you wouldn’t?” Muku asked, raising his head to look up at him. Yuki climbed down the ladder and shook his head in response, while Muku stopped bowing, his face now flushed as well. “Sorry about that…” He apologized, frowning. 

Yuki sighed, patting him on the shoulder. “It’s fine. Now go get dressed, or we’ll miss breakfast.” He told him, walking past him into the courtyard.

Muku nodded as he looked back at him, watching as Yuki left for breakfast. Tenma spoke up from his side of the room, now realizing the predicament Yuki and Muku were in. “Miyoshi was right. You two do have something with each other, huh?”

Muku froze, spluttering. “N-no! It’s nothing like that!” He spoke back at him, face getting redder. “He… he just wanted to sleep over. That’s all.” Muku concluded, exhaling a breath and exiting the room, but not before giving Tenma a wave.

Tenma sighed and waved back at him as the pink haired male closed the door. After a few moments, a loud ping resounded throughout the room as Tenma’s phone suddenly received a message. Taking it from his pocket and unlocking it, he realized that the text was from Kazunari. Taking a look at what he sent, Tenma widened his eyes.

“...Huh. So that’s what happened.”

—— — ——— — ——

Yuki was now in another studying session with Muku, and they were almost finished with whatever work they were to do before they retired for the night. It was the first study session they’d had in a while, and Yuki found that he missed these daily meetings, even though he didn’t really like doing this kind of work in general.

“And… that should be it!” Muku said, as he closed up the last textbook on the desk. The shojo-manga lover smiled at Yuki, taking all of his textbooks and putting them in his bag. “Today was shorter than usual, huh?” Muku mentioned, closing his bag up and staring back at him.

Yuki nodded his head. “Yeah.” He responded. He vaguely remembered the last meeting that they had, which was the one where they both decided to stop the sessions altogether. Yuki wouldn’t say it out loud, but he was glad that he had gotten to spend time with Muku like this again. “Is the next meeting on Wednesday evening?” Yuki asked him, as he grabbed his own textbooks and set them somewhere in his room.

Muku nodded, slinging his bag over his shoulders. “Yeah, that could work. I’ll see you in the morning, then!” Muku said enthusiastically, waving back at him before exiting his room.

Yuki waved back, and when Muku closed the door, he exhaled a breath. He knew that Muku’s birthday was coming soon. It was on the 30th, which meant that he had a couple more weeks to get a present for him. Sighing, Yuki sat down at his desk to think. What would Muku want for a present? He knew that Muku liked cute things just as much as he did, but there were so many things that he could think of when it came to that. 

Yuki could get him some manga, but he didn’t really know which books Muku did and didn’t have. And sure, he could ask him, but getting manga for him seemed like the most obvious thing to give. He wanted his present to be more… special. Different from whatever the other members of the company were giving him.

So, what else did Muku like? He could get him something small, like a bookmark for his manga or a small charm to put on his backpack, but none of those were good enough. Maybe something bigger? He could sew him up a large stuffy as a return for the gift he gave him during his birthday.

Yuki frowned. It still didn’t feel right.

He sighed as he thought back to his birthday, and back to what Muku had given him on that day. What had made that gift so special? It wasn’t how it looked or how big it was, but rather… the amount of effort and care Muku had put into making it.

Yuki grew determined. He needed to give him something like that. Something that he would put effort into. Maybe he could bake something for him, like cookies or cupcakes. He could ask Omi for help with that. Or, he could treat Muku and go somewhere like a restaurant or shop for his present. He still hadn’t brought him to that place where he got the bandages from. Or maybe…

...That’s it.

Yuki smiled a little as he realized what he really wanted to give to him. And so, he picked up his fabric and quickly got to work.

—— — ——— — ——

Over the next two weeks, he had asked multiple people to help out with his project. Experienced sewers in the company like Omi and Taichi were obvious to ask, and people who also wanted to help out were welcome. Whenever they would question what they were sewing, however, Yuki either avoided the question or told them that it was something he was doing cause he had nothing else to do. Which was partly true, since the Winter Troupe’s costumes were already finished, but the project meant more to him than something he just did on the side.

Yuki even asked Muku to help at some times, just so that they could hang out together more. He had to admit, he probably grew closer to Muku within those couple of weeks than he had since the beginning of the Summer Troupe. He was glad for that, actually, because everything that he was doing for him right now was leading up to his birthday, where he’d finally reveal to him what he’d been working on.

The real problem was in the last week of the month. Yuki had been informed of their company’s trip to another country rather late, so he was mildly panicking when he tried to finish his project before they left. They came back the day before Muku’s birthday, so he had to get this done today, or else his present would be late. And he didn’t want his present to be late. He wanted his present to be on the day of Muku’s birthday, not later, and not sooner. So, when he finally finished the last adjustment of his project, he let out a sigh of relief. It was very early in the morning, and he might’ve spent a couple all-nighters doing this, but it was worth it.

Yuki spent his entire time on the plane sleeping next to Muku. Yuki may or may not have rested his head on Muku’s shoulder while he was sleeping. And he may or may not have held his hand the entire plane ride as well. But one thing was for sure, when the plane landed safely in their destination, Yuki finally felt the weight of Muku’s birthday gift lift off his shoulders. 

And so came the day of Muku’s birthday, with Yuki incredibly tired thanks to that late and long plane ride they took back to Japan. When he woke up that morning, he had realized what day it was, and quickly made his way to the lounge after dressing up for the day. He had chosen to wear a dress he had chosen at the mall with Muku’s help, and some cute and simple earrings that he thought Muku would’ve liked. When he entered the lounge, he immediately caught sight of the decorations that littered the room from top to bottom. ‘The hell? When did anyone have the time to do this?’ Yuki thought, raising an eyebrow.

“Ah, Yuki, you’re awake!” A feminine voice spoke up.

Yuki turned his head to see Izumi in the kitchen, making what would seem to be breakfast, with a side of curry, of course. Sighing at the sight, Yuki sat down at the table. “Yeah, I’m awake. Who decorated the lounge? It’s not like anyone had the energy to do it when we came back.” Yuki mentioned, looking at the bright streamers.

He heard something sizzle from the kitchen as Izumi continued to cook. “Oh, me and Matsukawa decided to do it, along with some help from the ensemble.” She answered, smiling back at him. “Why are you awake so early? Shouldn’t you be getting some rest?” She asked him.

Yuki tried to think of an excuse. “Just woke up and couldn’t sleep again. I’m still a little tired, but I could always take a nap later anyways.” He lied, leaning on the table.

Izumi nodded in understanding. “Once you feel energized again, you should come here before dinner, cause that’s when we’re having Muku’s party.” She told him, setting the cooked meal on the table.

“I’ll make sure I am.” Yuki responded, taking a serving of breakfast and beginning to eat.

Throughout the morning, more and more people filled the room, ready to wish Muku a happy birthday once he walked in. Though, Yuki didn’t really want to say “happy birthday” to him with everyone else. He, instead, wanted to say it to him first. So, instead of waiting in the lounge, he went over to Muku and Kazunari’s shared room secretly, without being seen.

Opening the door, he noticed that Muku was still in his bed, sound asleep. Quietly, so that he wouldn’t wake him, he climbed up the ladder and saw Muku’s sleeping form once more. Smiling a little, he reached over and patted him on the shoulder. “Hey, Muku. Wake up.” Yuki muttered.

Muku stirred a bit before opening his eyes, seeing Yuki in front of him. “... You called me Muku.” He muttered sleepily, smiling up at him.

Yuki kneeled down so that their faces were closer. “Yeah. Happy birthday, Muku.” He whispered out, pinching his cheek.

Muku laughed. “Y-Yuki-kun! That’s embarrassing!” The brightest smile adorned his face, and Yuki couldn’t help but let out a laugh as well.

“Why’s it embarrassing? Nobody else is here, anyways.” Yuki responded, as Muku sat up in his bed.

Muku giggled. “I guess you’re right.” He answered back.

It was silent for a few moments as Muku seemed to stare at him fondly. Yuki, feeling slightly awkward, spoke up. “What? Is something wrong?” He asked him, his brow furrowing.

Muku responded instantly. “Don’t do that.” Yuki was going to speak once more, but Muku cut him off. “You look prettier when you’re smiling.” He complimented.

Yuki’s face immediately grew warm. Usually when people told him that, he’d brush it off like it was an everyday thing. But when it came to Muku…

Yuki couldn’t stop his heart from pounding in his ears. He tried making a response, but found that he couldn’t. Muku laughed once again. “I’ll go get changed. You can pick out my clothes for me today, and then we can head to the lounge for breakfast, alright?” Muku said, holding his hand.

Yuki, lost for words, just nodded. Like what Muku had said, Yuki picked out his clothes and Muku had changed, the both of them heading to the lounge. When they entered the room, they were quickly greeted with a series of “happy birthdays”, all of them different in some way. He got scolded by Tenma, who was complaining that this was Muku’s special day, and that they all should've been there in the lounge. Yuki teased him back, and once again, he and Tenma were arguing. Izumi broke them up, and everyone was able to continue the day as normal. Well, everyone besides Yuki.

Yuki, instead, had different plans for the day. Like Izumi had recommended, Yuki decided to take a nap after lunch. After a couple hours, Muku, surprisingly, had woken him up. They hung out together for a bit before Omi asked him for help with designing Muku’s cake. Yuki didn’t do any of the icing, but he did design the whole thing, which he was pretty proud of. After that, the party was soon to begin, and Yuki, though expecting it, wasn’t as excited as everyone else.

Instead, he was wary. He watched Muku the entire time as he hung out with everyone else, trying to see if he was enjoying everything. When Muku insulted himself, Yuki made sure that he felt better afterwards. And when there were any arguments or if something went wrong, Yuki would do his best to fix it. It was almost like he was Sakyo, but in a more milder way. 

The party lasted on for hours, and before Yuki knew it, it was already past midnight, and everyone was tuckered out. Omi did his best to clean up the decorations, while Izumi and most of the other adults just cleaned up the room in general. Most of the highschoolers had retired for the night, except for a few others and, surprisingly, Muku. 

Yawning cutely, Muku was exiting the lounge, already tired. Yuki felt bad that he was to keep Muku up for another hour, but he had to do it, or else his entire project would go to waste. Walking up to him, Yuki placed his hand on Muku’s shoulder. Slowly, Muku turned around to face him, looking sleepy.

“Could…” Yuki started, before hesitating. “Could you come to my room for a minute?” He asked him. Yuki knew that it wasn’t going to be a minute, but he let Muku agree anyway. ‘Staying up for another hour is worth it, Muku. I promise.’ He thought, holding Muku’s hand gently and walking to his room.

Once they were inside, Yuki spoke up once more. “Ok, now close your eyes.” He told him. Muku nodded and shut his eyes, even holding his hands over them just so that he couldn’t see. Taking in a deep breath, Yuki went out of his room and into the storage room, picking up his project which was set on a mannequin. He carried it to his room and set it in front of Muku, making adjustments as he saw fit. Once he thought it looked good, Yuki finally said, “Ok, you can open them now.”

Muku slowly removed his hands from his eyes, gasping as he saw what was in front of him. On the mannequin was none other than a prince outfit that Yuki had sewed himself. Each detail was sewn with care, and he could tell that Yuki had worked on it for a while. Each accent Muku adored, as the outfit looked just like what a real prince would wear. The cape, the boots, and… there was even a sheath for a sword. Muku could tell that Yuki put a lot of thought into this present.

“Yuki-kun…” Muku started, tears forming in his eyes. “This looks amazing!” He went up to Yuki and hugged him tight, sniffling.

Yuki hugged him back, smiling softly. “Are you crying?” He asked him, pulling away a bit to look at his face.

Sure enough, Muku’s face was running with tears. “S-sorry, Yuki-kun, I’m just so happy..!” He sniffled, wiping his face with his shirt’s sleeve.

Yuki sighed, grabbing a tissue and handing it to Muku. After he wiped his eyes, Yuki spoke up. “How about you put it on? I’m sure it’ll look great on you.” Yuki suggested, taking the outfit off of the mannequin and handing it to Muku.

Muku nodded his head. “Alright, Yuki-kun.” He agreed.

While Muku was undressing, Yuki went out of his room and returned to the storage room, revealing another mannequin that was hidden with a white cloth near the back. Although he didn’t want to change in such a dirty place like this, he figured that it was worth it, since it was Muku’s birthday. After he had changed, he went out of the storage room, about to head over to Muku until he got interrupted by Izumi on the way there.

“Yuki?” Izumi spoke up, as she saw him walking to his room. “Why are you still up? And… why are you wearing that?” She asked him, raising an eyebrow.

Yuki frowned. “It’s part of Muku’s birthday present.” He replied quickly, rushing past her and to his room.

Izumi smiled. “Well, I’m sure he’ll enjoy it very much!” She yelled back at him as Yuki entered his room.

Yuki sighed, brushing the dust off of his outfit now that he could see properly. When he turned around to face Muku, he saw that he was already done changing. His eyes widened when he noticed him, realizing that Muku looked better in that outfit than he expected. 

Yuki, with his face slightly red, walked up to him. “You look just like a prince, Muku.” He said, brushing the hair out of Muku’s face.

Muku was lost for words, probably because of the outfit he was wearing. “Yuki-kun… you look beautiful.” Muku said, holding his hands gently.

Yuki flushed a little. “Thanks. I was originally just going to do that prince outfit, but…” He looked down at the dress he was wearing. “I thought that having matching outfits was better.” He answered back.

Muku beamed. “You look just like a princess.” He complimented once more, tearing up again. “S-sorry, Yuki-kun… it’s just a bit too much for me..!” He said, tears falling down his face once more.

“Muku…” Yuki whispered out. He was so glad that Muku was happy. All of that effort he had put into these outfits wasn't wasted. The time he spent with him leading up to this moment seemed too good to be true, but this was real. He was standing in front of someone he secretly loved, and the fact that he was able to do something this special for him warmed his heart. “Wait here for a second.” Yuki told him, going to his desk and rummaging around in one of the drawers.

Muku tilted his head cutely, but waited patiently nonetheless. Once Yuki was done searching, he straightened up and went over to Muku, putting something on his head. “Eh?” Muku made a noise of surprise as he felt weight pressing down on him, and he looked over to the mirror to spot a golden crown on top of his head. He smiled once more and looked over at Yuki, who also had a smaller crown in his hands. Picking it up gently, he did the same as Yuki had done to him, placing the crown on his head.

Smiling, Yuki rested his head on Muku’s shoulder a little, feeling relaxed. He took his hand and held it tightly, looking up at him. “Yuki…” Muku muttered, kneeling down. Yuki flushed as Muku put a chaste kiss to his gloved hand, and he felt his breath hitch in his throat. Muku pulled away and stood up, embracing him tightly. “...I love you, Yuki-kun.” He whispered out, almost forcibly.

Yuki felt his eyes water. Why was he crying? “M-Muku…” He managed to say, tears now streaming down his face. “I…”

Muku pulled away a bit, looking at his crying face. “Yuki, please don’t cry.” He said to him, wiping his cheek with his thumb. “I’m sorry, Now was probably a bad time to-“

Yuki pulled him in for a sudden kiss, arms wrapping around his neck. Muku seemed surprised for a moment, because for a while, he froze. But when he felt Muku’s arms wrap around his waist, he knew that he was enjoying it. His lips were softer than Yuki had anticipated, and after the rough start, they both continued to kiss each other softly.

Yuki had never felt anything like it. The same feelings were there, but they were much stronger this time. And when they finally pulled away from each other, Yuki didn’t even notice that he was out of breath until then. He smiled and hugged him tightly, burying his face into Muku’s shoulder. “I love you too, Muku.” He muttered out, feeling a hidden weight lift off of his shoulders.

“...Thank you, Yuki-kun.” Muku replied quietly, as he hugged him back just as tightly.

It was silent for a while, as the both of them just stood there, hugging. Yuki spoke up to break the silence. “We are so using these outfits for Halloween.” He mentioned, pulling away a bit.

Muku laughed. “That would be nice, Yuki-kun.” He replied, beaming back at him. “And um… does this mean that we’re boyfriends now or…” He asked, looking away.

Yuki made an ‘are you serious?’ expression before answering his question. “Um, duh? There’s no way that I’d waste so much of my time and fabric creating these for someone I only liked as a friend.” He leaned in and kissed him on the cheek. Muku’s face reddened significantly, which made Yuki smirk.

“S-sorry, Yuki-kun!” Muku responded, embarrassed. “I-it’s just, I don’t think I’ll ever get used to the kissing…” He said, visibly flustered.

Yuki laughed. “Well, you better, cause I’m gonna do it a lot more often.”

After the confession, Yuki and Muku talked and laughed with one another until Tenma came in, complaining that they’d been in there for too long. They changed into their sleepwear and said their goodbyes (but not before Yuki kissed Muku on the cheek in front of Tenma, who grew irritated with his new partner), which left him and Tenma in the room.

Sighing, Yuki climbed up into his bed and immediately fell asleep, smiling and thinking about Muku.

Meanwhile, Tenma was also on his bed, holding his phone and sending something to Kazunari.

After a while, Kazunari responded. “Woah, TenTen! Where’d you get this?” was his response.

Smiling, Tenma texted him back. “Took it about fifteen minutes ago. They’re definitely boyfriends now.”

“Sweet! Remind me to post it on the blog tomorrow morning. I’m beat from cleaning up the lounge! T-T” Kazunari complained, while Tenma chuckled.

“Sure.” Was his final response before rolling over to get some rest, closing his eyes with relief.

—— — ——— — ——

“K-Kazunari! Did you post this!?” Muku screamed out at breakfast the next morning, referring to the newly posted photo on the Summer Troupe’s blog.

Yuki leaned over to take a better look. “...Huh. Weren’t you cleaning the lounge? When did you take this?” He asked him, while Muku shrunk from embarrassment beside him.

“Oh, I didn’t take it.” Kazunari replied, glancing over at Tenma. “TenTen did!” He said, beaming even though the orange haired male glared sharply at him.

“Hm? Who took what?” Izumi asked, as she set another plate down on the table. Muku nervously showed her the photo, and she gasped in realization. “Oh, so that’s the present Yuki was talking about! I should’ve known, you two were getting pretty close with each other over the last week.” She stated, as Muku’s blush only grew deeper.

Kazunari’s mouth watered as breakfast was set down on the table. “Well, enough chit-chat! Let’s eat!” He exclaimed, putting his phone on the table.

On the phone, the photo of Muku and Yuki kissing in their handmade outfits could be seen on the screen.

**Author's Note:**

> As always, happy birthday, Muku 🥳🥳🥳 His EN birthday card didn’t come home to me, but I’m still glad to celebrate!


End file.
